The Tories introduced the 50% strike ballot threshold to make industrial action harder. MATT WRACK argues that a Labour government has no justification for leaving it on the statute book
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The emergence of the ‘shy socialists’
Having been ridiculed into the sidelines for decades by an aggressive right-wing press, Britain’s left has been given fresh confidence by the Corbyn campaign, says EMILY MAIDEN
In the wake of Ann Widdecombe’s murder, JOHN GREEN wonders whether the government will really get to grips with the root cause of these attacks on our MPs
The new PM’s opening addresses offered hope, council homes and reform — but little detail on how any of it will be delivered, warns CLAUDIA WEBBE
Despite the screeching from the right-wing media, Burnham’s speech chimed with the public mood - and socialists should take advantage, says Morning Star editor BEN CHACKO
Scotland's Labour leader cannot continue to evade responsibility for the party's decline, argues LAUREN HARPER
Nature as well as society works dialectically, asserts the Marx Memorial Library and Workers’ School
IN 1992, political commentators felt poised for a Labour victory after 13 devastating years of Thatcherism which resulted in mass unemployment, the butchery of Britain’s industrial base and rioting over the poll tax.
All signs pointed to a slim success for Labour, consistently polling marginally above the Tories. Yet the Tory defeat did not materialise and pollsters were forced to concede that there was a flaw in their methods.
This apparent gulf between the polling results and the actual general election outcome was put down to a new phenomenon — the “shy Tory factor.” Pollsters realised that there were many people up and down the country who were so ashamed of their intention to vote Tory that they either gave a non-committal response when questioned on voting preferences or who were prepared to answer with an outright lie.
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JOHN REES replies to Claudia Webbe
Who you ask and how you ask matter, as does why you are asking — the history of opinion polls shows they are as much about creating opinions as they are about recording them, writes socialist historian KEITH FLETT
Deep disillusionment with the Westminster cross-party consensus means rupture with the status quo is on the cards – bringing not only opportunities but also dangers, says NICK WRIGHT